BFM 2000 Salem Study: Education/Stewardship

Introduction

One of the things that you learn at a young age is to set a goal and try hard to reach that goal. Whether it be a goal of reading a book, setting a personal record in an activity, or saving enough money to buy something that you want, achieving a goal is a rewarding feeling - especially when the goal is good! Over the years, people have changed their goals. Part of this is due to technology and new things being a part of everyday life, but another part of shifting goals has to do with the secularization of our culture. College freshman were interviewed a couple of years ago about what goals they view as being essential. Do you know what was at the top of the list for these 18-19 year olds? The number one goal for them was getting rich and 86% felt this way! 50 years earlier in 1967 only 43% of people listed this as their top goal in life. Listen to some of the other goals: 51% said to be famous, 30% said to help others, and only 10% said to grow spiritually. Over the years, goals have changed and our focus has turned more and more inward. This is true of people inside and outside the church! We have more and more of a focus on living out “your” truth and finding “your” true self and following “your” heart rather than looking out for the good of others and pursuing what God wants us to do. The individualism mindset of so many people in the 21st century prevents them from seeing the Biblical truth that we are here to do much more than just please ourselves!

While the popularity of getting rich might be higher than ever before with the younger generation, it’s not like previous generations and centuries of ages gone by didn’t have their own problems. Due to sin we all will struggle with different problems. How do we correct these problems? By spending time in the Word and allowing Scripture to change the way that we think and problem solve. Instead of looking at our life in terms of the red and black like we do in the business world, we can instead look at our lives with a Christian worldview that looks to God’s Word to tell us what we should focus on and strive for. As we continue to look at the BFM tonight we are examine what our goals should be as Christians. As we study these goals, we’ll also look at how Christians view things like money, time, and intelligence as gifts that we are called to use for the glory of our God, not the expansion of our pocketbook or reputation.

Tonight we’ll look at articles 12 and 13: Education and Stewardship starting with Education

“Christianity is the faith of enlightenment and intelligence. In Jesus Christ abide all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. All sound learning is, therefore, a part of our Christian heritage. The new birth opens all human faculties and creates a thirst for knowledge. Moreover, the cause of education in the Kingdom of Christ is co-ordinate with the causes of missions and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal support of the churches. An adequate system of Christian education is necessary to a complete spiritual program for Christ’s people.

In Christian education there should be a proper balance between academic freedom and academic responsibility. Freedom in any orderly relationship of human life is always limited and never absolute. The freedom of a teacher in a Christian school, college, or seminary is limited by the pre-eminence of Jesus Christ, by the authoritative nature of the Scriptures, and by the distinct purpose for which the school exists.”

Deuteronomy 6:1–10 CSB

1 “This is the command—the statutes and ordinances—the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, so that you may follow them in the land you are about to enter and possess. 2 Do this so that you may fear the Lord your God all the days of your life by keeping all his statutes and commands I am giving you, your son, and your grandson, and so that you may have a long life. 3 Listen, Israel, and be careful to follow them, so that you may prosper and multiply greatly, because the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has promised you a land flowing with milk and honey. 4 “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. 7 Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates. 10 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give you—a land with large and beautiful cities that you did not build,

Colossians 3:1–2 CSB

1 So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

What’s the Big Deal About Education?

We understand why the Baptist Faith and Message talks about salvation, the Bible, sinfulness, God, Missions and grace… But why does it talk about Education? Let’s take a trip into our history as Southern Baptists. Did you know that Southern Baptists have always cared deeply about education? The first Baptist church in America was founded in 1638 and just about 100 years later Rhode Island College (now Brown University) was founded by Baptists. Today in the state of Missouri there are 3 colleges specifically united to the Missouri Baptist Convention, Missouri Baptist University, Hannibal-LaGrange University, and Southwest Baptist University. In the Southern Baptist Convention we have 6 SBC Seminaries, Gateway Seminary, SWBTS, MBTS, NOBTS, SBTS, SEBTS. These 6 seminaries train a significant number of future and current pastors of churches all around the world. Education is a big deal… But it’s not only a big deal for pastors, missionaries, youth pastors, worship pastors, and future seminary professors.

Education in SBC life is a big deal because we want to educate people in light of what the Bible teaches. We want our school teachers to teach their kids to the glory of God and love on them as Christ loves them. We want our college teachers to train future generations how to go about their jobs and careers to glorify God and be Kingdom witnesses wherever they are planted. We want seminary professors to teach their students what the Bible says and to boldly stand unapologetically on the truthfulness of Scripture. All of that starts with a Christian worldview of Education.

It doesn’t matter if you homeschool, if your kids go to public school, or if your kid is going to a private Christian school - education is something that is important and everyone agrees to that point given where we find ourselves in our fallen world. I’ve heard horror stories from teachers and friends alike regarding things that have taken place in the world of education. I’m not talking about Chicago or New York, I’m talking about Southwest Missouri. I’ve heard horror stories from friends in college of things that they’ve encountered at Christian schools. I’ve seen good friends be dragged away from their previous Christian worldview and adopt a very worldly mindset simply because they were taken advantage of by a group of people. Education is a big deal!

The BFM reminds us that all sound learning is a part of our Christian heritage. Consider that statement for just a moment. What does learning imply? It implies that we previously didn’t know something and then we discovered something. We as humans are finite, we are here and then we are gone, we learn and we grow along the way… Yet, our God is different. He is infinite. He is uncreated. He knows all things! All humans learn new things and many humans enjoy learning - Christian and non-Christian! What’s the difference? All sound learning, all truthful learning, is a testament to our God. It’s not like God only matters with religious things or Bible answers and that He doesn’t matter when it comes to what we talk about in school.

Example. 2 + 2 doesn’t equal 4 because Aristotle or some Greek philosopher said it did… 2 + 2 = 4 because God said so. God defines truth because God Himself is truth! As we learn, we grow and this is one of the reasons why we have so many opportunities for spiritual growth at FBC. Sunday morning and Sunday night are times of worship, but they are also times where we grow in our walk with the Lord as we open the Word and learn from it. Sunday morning Sunday school and Wednesday night Bible study times are more times where we have this “Christian Education” time if you will as we learn from the Word alongside one another.

Learning is essential in the Christian life. None of us will ever arrive at the place where we know it all - there’s always more to uncover and we learn more and grow stronger as we do this in Christian community. Christian education matters in the local church and it certainly matters in the home. The home is where you teach your children what the Bible says and how to live a Christlike lifestyle. Think about this for a moment. Children are at church for 1-2 hours most weeks (maybe 3-4 max) but they go to school for 40+ hours a week and they are in their homes for that amount of time if not much more! If we want our kids to love Christ and be disciple making disciples, we can’t expect the church to be the only place that kids hear about Jesus. That responsibility, as Deuteronomy 6 reminds us, falls on us in the home. That doesn’t mean that we stop coming to church - we need the church too! But the local gathering of God’s people can’t give you all that you need. You need to eat the meat of God’s Word throughout the week and come on Sunday/Wednesday to fill up along the way.

As we think about where we are positioned in Salem with a school like SBU down the road and whenever we think of the teachers and administrators who call FBC Salem their home and whenever we think of the students of all ages who attend FBC Salem, we quickly realize that it is a privilege to have what we have and that God has blessed us immensely! With that in our mind, as we think about education and about God’s blessings, we have to realize that we must be wise stewards with what He has given to us!

Now, to article 13 on Stewardship

“God is the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; all that we have and are we owe to Him. Christians have a spiritual debtorship to the whole world, a holy trusteeship in the gospel, and a binding stewardship in their possessions. They are therefore under obligation to serve Him with their time, talents, and material possessions; and should recognize all these as entrusted to them to use for the glory of God and for helping others. According to the Scriptures, Christians should contribute of their means cheerfully, regularly, systematically, proportionately, and liberally for the advancement of the Redeemer's cause on earth.”

Acts 2:44–45 CSB

44 Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. 45 They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as any had need.

What is Stewardship?

We’ve talked about stewardship several times over the last 6 months and here the BFM addresses this Biblical concept. The BFM shares that disciples give to advance the Kingdom’s cause. The reason that we give is to further God’s Kingdom. To make disciples. To take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Whenever my dad became the Pastor of Children/Recreation at FBC Ozark in 2005, they were about to kick off a building campaign to construct a building that would more than double the existing church. This building was going to house children’s, preschool, youth, and adult classroom space. It would have a gym, worship space, and commons space for large events. The church had outgrown their existing space and required more room for these groups. I was listening to the pastor at the time talk about this type of building and trusting in God along the way. He said this, “We are building this building for people who don’t even go here. For people who haven’t even been born yet. We’re not a social club… We’re a church that has been commissioned by God to make disciples and the reality of the situation is that in order to do that we require more room.”

I can’t tell you how many lives have been changed over the last 16 years simply because FBC Ozark listened to the Lord and built what they built for God’s glory. This required the people in the church to practice stewardship in ways that maybe they hadn’t before. To go above and beyond what they had traditionally done in order to provide for those whom God was sending their way to minister to. This required people to make some sacrifices! With more people came more places to serve and with more places to serve and more ministries taking place came a need for people to step up in ways they hadn’t before and give their time. See, stewardship isn’t just about treasure (money), it’s a comprehensive term that includes all that we have. Stewardship is giving back to God what He has given to us. Our time, talent, and treasure as well as everything in between. It all is given to us by God and therefore it all belongs to God.

Stewardship isn’t a God tax as some call it. It’s about giving our heart to the Lord and having Him use us as He see’s fit. Imagine what happens whenever a church buys into this? What would happen? What could happen? It would be like what we see in Acts 2-4 as the local church is all in for Jesus Christ that they do whatever it took to share the Gospel and help their community. What is the result in such a congregation? There is deep Gospel unity as the most important thing is the most important thing. There is also deep Gospel maturity as we grow in our faith in the Lord the more that we trust in Him and the more that we grow alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ. Finally, there is deep Gospel impact whenever stewardship is practiced and lived out within the local church.

FBC Salem is a church that from a new perspective does a good job of giving time and talent and treasure. I’ve been blessed to see so many of you volunteer your time and use your gifts for God’s glory in a variety of ways. I’ve been blessed to see so many of you give not only to support our local church but to support other needs and ministries.

Here’s the question: What is God calling you to do and what is God doing at FBC Salem? If you’ve always done something but God is calling you to do something new, you’d better do what God is calling you to do. God has sent us so many new faces and so many children and young families that need to be ministered to. We need to practice wise stewardship as individuals and as a congregation to love on them and to disciple them. This might require us to get a little bit uncomfortable for a period of time. Remember this though: God is at work… As long as He is at work and blessing us, we have an obligation and responsibility to minister to others and be the best stewards we can be in 2022 and planning for 2032 and beyond!

How Can We Be Better Stewards?

As we give our time and serve in the church, we practice stewardship. As we love on others and act as salt and light in our communities, we practice stewardship. As we read the Bible in our homes and take captive every though, we practice stewardship. As we sacrificially give to support the ministry of this church, we practice stewardship. As we go on mission trips and help others in our community, we practice stewardship.

We go above and beyond to meet the needs before us with what God has given to us. That might look like doing things a little differently or thinking outside of the box or thinking BIG because of what God is doing! Here’s what we know, though, if God is opening up a door and if God is at work in something, He will guide and He will provide each step of the way. Our responsibility in this process is to trust in His leading. To have faith in Him. To give generously. To pray persistently. To love loyally. To follow Him and to watch Him exceed our wildest imaginations. To use what we have to reach people with the Gospel who aren’t even here today and who might not even know about FBC Salem. The way that you and I can be better stewards each day of our lives is by keeping our focus on Jesus and asking ourselves how we can best serve Him with our time, talent, and treasure. The result of this lifestyle will be one where we keep the Gospel at the center of all that we do as individuals and as a church and our purpose falls in line with what the Bible teaches over and over again. Our purpose isn’t self-centered. Our purpose isn’t to store up for ourselves earthly treasures. Our purpose isn’t to win an award or become famous… Our purpose is to proclaim the Gospel, make disciples, and glorify God as we do it. You and I can be better stewards as we remember to live our life and operate in church in such a way that glorifies God and makes His name known to all inside and outside of this building. Not for our good or to make a name for ourselves - but for the glory of our good God.